December 27 2006

One more holiday-related topic is a toy not yet purchased. I am so confused! I am trying to buy a universal remote for my TV/DVD/stereo/TiVo/cable setup, and I am so lost. I was all over www.remotecentral.com which was helpful, but clearly written for people who are seriously into the category. I need some more basic advice.

My hardest challenge is getting the inputs/outputs all switched over right. The TV and receiver have separate inputs from the DVD/TiVo/HD Cable. I need a universal remote that will make it easy to push a single button and have all those aligned correctly. I understand that some of these universal remotes play macros that should be able to do that.

I like the clean look of the ones that have LCD screens. Other than that, I haven't a clue about how to buy a universal remote. Oh, and I don't need a super-high end one -- just looking to unify those five devices. Any pointers?